Meet our uPenn Intern, Priya Nair

JET Education Services is pleased to welcome Shivapriya (Priya) Nair, our 2026 intern from the University of Pennsylvania, USA.

Born in India and raised in Lesotho within a family of educators, Priya grew up seeing education from every angle: "the student's, the teacher's, and, around the dinner table, the administrator's and policymaker's too." She says that coming to South Africa feels "a little like coming home to the region," while giving her the opportunity to explore a country that is entirely its own.

Priya is currently a candidate for a Master of Science in Education (M.S.Ed.) in International Educational Development at the University of Pennsylvania. Her master's studies have focused on emerging policies around climate change education and the use of AI to leapfrog learning gaps in under-resourced settings.

“I am passionate about making sure education keeps pace with the world it is preparing people for. As the fourth industrial revolution reshapes the knowledge and skills we need, and climate change forces us to rethink our relationship with the environment, education systems have to adapt equitably and creatively, especially in the Global South. I believe that takes a combination of rigorous research, data-driven policymaking, and decolonial approaches to education. I have personally benefited from a multidisciplinary education that valued indigenous knowledge systems and developed me holistically as a learner, without sacrificing any rigour or critical thinking. That is something I wish every learner, anywhere in the world, could access,” adds Priya.

Priya applied to JET because she was inspired by the organisation's continuous efforts to improve education in South Africa since the end of apartheid. The "think and do tank" approach was particularly exciting to her, as not every organisation gets to conduct research and then implement its insights directly in the field.

Working within the JET Innovation and Implementation (I&I) division, Priya has mainly been supporting field observations of the Eduten programme in schools in Soweto, contributing to qualitative research through teacher interviews, and writing literature reviews on the future of teacher training for AI use in various contexts.

Reflecting on her experience so far, Priya says she has seen how "the needle of progress moves incrementally through the dedicated efforts of so many people who go into schools day in and day out, collecting data, training teachers, and teaching students." She has enjoyed working with the JET I&I team and has learned a lot by being in the JET space and witnessing so many different styles of leadership and work.

Being in South Africa has been a joy in and of itself. Hearing tidbits of Sesotho and a range of other languages in the office has made her feel right at home, as though she were reconnecting with her younger self. She says the food has been phenomenal, the pace of Johannesburg is exciting and vibrant, and working with little students once again has been incredibly rewarding and heart-melting.

Outside of work, Priya has been trying to catch as many winter sunsets as possible, describing them as "too stunning to capture on camera." She has also been reading a lot of fiction. A recent favourite is The Correspondent by Virginia Evans, a novel told through the letters an older woman writes to her friends and loved ones. It has inspired her to take a break from texting and start writing letters and longer personal emails to connect with her own community.

We are excited to have Priya and look forward to the contributions she will make during her internship.